Celestia enjoyed the warm feeling in her stomach that the ouzo brought on. It was wine, but very strong. It was so strong that the locals cut it with water, though she wondered if Starswirl had used enough water as he weaved slightly up the avenue as they were led to the Pnyx. That was what the Strategos called the pile of cloud upon which the Boule and the Ekklesia would speak and deliberate. It was set up rather like an amphitheater, with a mounding of cloud in the center for the speakers to address the masses who would sit on bench-like ripples of cloud in a bowl shape fully surrounding the central mound.
"All of this, we built in memory of Marethens, which as you know was destroyed by a hurricane seven hundred years ago. So these are but shadows of the distant past. Our Demokratia, on the other hoof, is as strong and unchanging as ever!" There was a ring of pride in his voice as he led them up the slope. Within the depression, hundreds of pegasi sat speaking with one another in small groups. At the base of the concavity, a group of ponies ringed the Pnyx and one pony sat upon it, above the others, listening to them argue. "And there is our illustrious Epistates herself, fresh off the rain farm. That is why our system works as well as it does: one day, the council is chaired by the son of a wealthy merchant, the next day by the daughter of a rain farmer. Everypony gets a turn in the barrel and if you are unfair to somepony, they may well have the opportunity to be unfair to you the next day. Sure, it gets a little loud sometimes..." the argument increased in volume considerably as they closed on the Prytenais, the tribe which led the council for a bit more than a month, in this case the Fleetfeathers.
"Grey Wind, this cannot be permitted to continue! Starchaser and his family have deliberately been redirecting the thermal updrafts into my rain farm for the past two weeks!" A pale gold pegasus with a purple mane gesticulated at a group of pegasi who appeared to be a family group, all with similar dark brown and reddish coloring. "You're a farmer! You know how hard it is to condense properly with that kind of disruption!"
"Epistates," said the oldest of the family, presumably Starchaser, "there is nothing deliberate or malicious in what we are doing. We are simple cloud herders. We have a contract to take condensed product from Moon Dancer's farm and deliver it to the Strawberry Sunshine freehold and the prevailing winds require us to herd the clouds to the south of Skyscape's farm. And that means a little updraft gets displaced to the north. It can't be helped and it is clearly legal under the Aeroluvial Rights of Bypass of Cloud Herders Act as passed by the one thousand, three hundred and ninety second Ekklesia."
"Bah! It's more than a little updraft; my condensate is down eight percent! Moon Dancer is my main competitor for northern freehold rain contracts and she deliberately contracted with Strawberry Sunshine at a lower rate so that you would disrupt my operations and you know it!" Skyscape was turning orange in the face with frustration and anger.
"That's none of my business and it's a legal contract!" Starchaser too was growing darker in his coloring.
"Gentlecolts!" Gray Wind, a deep gray pegasus with a pale blond mane and golden eyes clopped her forehooves together to get attention. "This is clearly a matter for the courts. Let the Hellaia sort this out!" The parties stopped arguing and started grumbling. "Next!"
Commander Hurricaine stepped forward. "Epistates, I come with a foreign embassy!" Gray Wind's eyes widened as she took in the unicorns and got rather excited.
"An embassy! Oh, lucky me! I thought it was going to be the same old farmers versus herders arguments all day!" She did a little happy dance atop the Pnyx as Celestia and Starswirl tried to stop themselves from chuckling. She got control of herself and settled down. "Forgive me, I am sure there is a more decorous way to greet our foreign guests."
"We were well met with Ouzo and good cheer, Epistates." Celestia smiled and bowed her head. "I am Equesse Celestia and this is my companion Starswirl, We bring greetings from the court of Princess Platinum of Unicornia to the ponies of Stratopolis." Starswirl also bowed, though perhaps he teetered a bit on his hooves.
"Oh, please, no bowing." Gray Wind blushed slightly as they rose. "We don't do that sort of thing here. We're all equal under the sky. I welcome you to Stratopolis, and I hope you'll forgive our informality. Didn't learn a lot of courtly manners on the farm, I fear." She smiled warmly at the two and Celestia found herself liking this pony immensely for some reason. "So, what brings you two up here? We haven't seen a cloud-walking unicorn in years. I gather you aren't here to talk about the weather."
Starswirl blinked. "Well, actually, that's exactly what we came to talk about. It is rather important that we inform our neighbors of our findings and the solutions we are working on."
"Really? You figured out what's going on sun-wise? Well, that's a relief! I should really call the Boule together so that you can address us all in council and we can form an opinion. Excuse me." She jumped up in the air and flew about thirty feet up. "HEY! I NEED AN APARTIA FOR THE BOULE, NOW!"
"For what?" rang out a voice from the benches.
"FOR ME BEING EPISTATES AND CALLING FOR AN APARTIA, THAT'S FOR WHAT!"
There was some grumbling at that, but rules were rules. The conversations broke up as members of the Boule approached the Pnyx, sitting in the first few rows and others sat further back. "Manebraker, can you get me a headcount?" One of the other Fleetfeathers counted the ponies in the first few rows.
"Still about twenty short of an apartia, Epistates." The pale blue pegasus had a black mane and dark purple eyes, and his cutie mark was a black cloud with a thunderbolt. A weather warden, thought Celestia. Thunderkickers and cloud busters. "I'll go see who I can round up. Come on, guys! Let's hit the taverns first." Other members of the Fleetfeather tribe followed him into the city.
"Sorry Equesse, this may take a little bit to get a group big enough to legally make a decision." Gray Wind smiled at her as they waited. "Are there other unicorns as tall as you? I hope you don't mind my asking."
"No, not at all. I am the tallest unicorn anypony can recall having seen, and please, just call me Celestia. I wasn't born an Equesse or anything."
"Really? Were you elected?" The Epistates leaned forward on her cloud cushion.
"No, it was a grant for services rendered to the crown. There's been some trouble recently and I helped get things under control." She swallowed, not really wanting to go into the story. "I'm really just an apprentice mage."
"Well, you certainly don't seem haughty and arrogant like those snobs who came through here last time, demanding that ponies m'lord and m'lady them all day. The Boule almost threw them out! No wonder your princess sent you instead! And I love your jewelry! Goodness, that's exquisite!" Celestia smiled and nodded, quietly thanking her. "Oh, here comes the angry mob! OK, get up here on the Pnyx with me." The unicorns complied, Celestia more steadily, perhaps. "The way this works is I will introduce you, you will say your part and stand down, and then anypony else who has something to say will be able to speak until I bring an end to the discussion and call for votes on any proposals that may have been made. Strategos, would you care to stand beside the embassy? Your presence will as always add to the significance of the discussion."
Commander Hurricane smiled and stood next to the two unicorns on stage. Starswirl looked at him, slightly blearily. "Hey, that wasn't bad; she didn't talk our wings off!" The Strategos scowled at him. "Not that I have any wings."
"What was that?" Grey Wind frowned at the general. "What did he say?"
Hurricane stuffed his hoof in Starswirl's face. "Oh, nothing. It's the lad's first time trying ouzo, is all."
"Celestia... what did he say?" The Epistates glared at the Strategos.
She pinkened slightly. "Just that you could be a little long-winded is all. Nothing mean."
"Oh... I know where THAT'S coming from! You're still sore that I walloped you last week at the symposium on The Clouds." She grinned at the black pegasus.
"You never did! Aristoponies was paying homage to Trotcrates, not mocking him." The commander turned his nose up and looked away, disdaining her argument anew.
"Ha! That's why the politics all came my way! He was lampooning Trotcrates, why can't you see that? I mean, he wrote that part where Streflyades was masturbating under a blanket while Trotcrates was trying to get him to meditate for flying out loud!" The proud stallion would not budge. "Hurricane, look, I realize that you like both Aristoponies and Trotcrates, but they didn't like each other!"
He snorted. "It was constructive criticism and I bet Trotcrates was in the audience laughing with everypony else!"
"Excuse me! Is THIS what you called an apartia for, Epistates?" One of the Bouletai at the base of the Pnyx stood up, a bag of ouzo in his hoof. "If so, I'd like to get back to destroying my liver." The crowd laughed.
"We'll talk later, OK?" she said softly.
"OK," he replied softly and smiled at her. Ah, thought Celestia.
Grey Wind cleared her throat. "Citizens of the Boule of Stratopolis! We are graced this day with an embassy from Unicornia! Equesse Celestia and Starswirl are here to bring us news of import regarding the condition of the sun!" That silenced the hubbub in the crowd. Even the portly reddish pegasus who had spoken earlier put down his ouzo to pay attention. "I ask that we give them attendance and consider their words carefully! We will then have time for debate and discussion before rendering our decision as to whatever our response, if any should be! Equesse Celestia, Starswirl, you are granted the right to speak before the Boule. Please give us your news and proposals, if any." She backed away, leaving them at the center of the Pnyx.
Starswirl whispered to her. "You go ahead, I'll do projections if you need them." She nodded.
"Good pegasi of Stratopolis! Princess Platinum of Unicornia sends greetings and good wishes on behalf of her ponies! We rely most heavily on your rain farms for our sustenance, and maintaining good relations with you is of paramount importance to her highness!"
There was muttering among the crowd and a smattering of short-lived applause. She suddenly realized how vulnerable she felt, standing, surrounded by what looked like a few hundred strangers. She mastered the rising panic and continued.
"The astronomers at the Royal Observatory and the mages at the Royal Academy have been working on the problem of the recent cold weather. Solar output is down two percent in the past four years, and the trend is not improving. Observations of sunspot activity are pointing at a slowdown in convection activity." Starswirl used his illusory magic to display a flat projection of the sun's convection action, showing heat from the core as red arrows moving to the surface turning to blue arrows as cooler material sinks. As the display progressed, the thickness of the lines was reduced and the speed of the circular action slowed. "This means less of the heat from the core is making it to the surface. That means less heat for the world and it isn't going to get any better. Our planet will become a snowball. And then as convection drops and pressure drops, the star will contract due to gravity."
The image pulled away, showing a glowing ball which got darker and shrank. "We have a theory that once this happens, the pressure at the center will start the convection process again, but at much higher temperatures due to the higher density. That will cause the uppermost layers of the star to expand far beyond its current size." The star suddenly swelled up and became a deep red color. "This may happen in two or three hundred years; we aren't sure. But nopony will be here to see it. By that time, the world will have become so cold that the atmosphere will have frozen."
You could have heard a pin drop. Then all hell broke out as pegasi started screaming, shouting questions, cursing, calling her a liar and generally running around. Gray Wind was on her knees, hooves to her face, sobbing uncontrollably and Commander Hurricane stared at her in utter horror.
"But we have some ideas!" She shouted to try to stop the chaos, but her voice was lost in the mayhem. The drunk pegasi in front threw back his head and drained off his remaining ouzo in a stroke. A group of three pegasi started throwing apples and assorted junk at her, screaming that she was trying to destroy the city. "Quiet everypony!" Bedlam raged.
"I SAID QUIET!" The Voice boomed out, knocking several pegasi closest to the Pnyx to the ground off the back of their benches. Hurricane and Gray Wind covered their ears in pain. Even Starswirl looked at her in dazed amazement. She had never used the Voice at that volume before. It sounded like mountain sneezing or a giant dragon roaring for order. Apologize later, lead now. "NOW THAT I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION, I ASSURE YOU THAT WE HAVE SOME IDEAS!"
The pegasi sat back down, shaken and worried, but no longer panicking. "We have one idea that can buy us five years of good harvests, and we need your help. We can use that time to come up with a better, permanent solution. All the best minds in Unicornia are fully invested in solving the problem with the sun, I assure you! We all want to live!"
She glanced and noticed that the Strategos was now kneeling beside Grey Wind and holding her hoof while she sobbed quietly. She nodded at Starswirl who drew a side view of Unicornia with the sun above it. "The Academy has a plan to increase the amount of heat that reaches the surface by concentrating it with a lens made of water, suspended above the farmlands. This will allow for good harvests for the next five years, by which time we hope to have a permanent solution in place which will allow us to return to our normal lives." The projection showed the lens focusing the rays of the sun on the farms and their fields ripening.
"We need your help collecting that water, roughly two point three million gallons a day, at a location centered fifty miles east of Unicornia and the freeholds. Hundreds of unicorns will be stationed there for sunrise, to stabilize this lens and keep it in position as the sun tracks to the west throughout the day. We calculate that this will take roughly one third of our workforce, every day. We could raise the water from ground sources, but that would drain rivers and lakes and it would also require our workforce to double, and those unicorns won't be able to work on the long-term solution. Therefore, we need the pegasi and their atmospheric expertise for this solution to function. We need to cooperate more closely than ever before. We plan to start the operation in three days if you are able to commit to this. Thank you for your attention and consideration." Starswirl's shut down his light display and they stood quietly, ready to answer questions.
Grey Wind had recovered sufficiently to speak. "D-do you think that might actually work?" she asked, quietly and shakily.
"As long as we all work our hardest, yes. I have absolute faith it will. Because the alternative is unthinkable." Celestia reached out and touched Grey Wind on the cheek, wiping away a tear, while Hurricane supported her. "Now what?"
"Now the Bouletai will line up to address their fellows in turn from the Pnyx and either speak in support or opposition to your request, or they may simply ask questions. After each speaker is finished, you may respond." She sniffled. "Some of them may say cruel or stupid things. Do not lose your temper, Celestia. And thank you for telling us this news. Even if it turns out there is nothing we can do, at least we can start doing some things we always meant to, but never made time for." With that, she kissed Commander Hurricane on the cheek and looked fondly into his eyes. "I could not die beside a finer stallion."
Tears ran down the Strategos' cheeks. "Nor I a better mare. Now, here come the arguers."
The first to mount the Pnyx was a narrow shouldered, bony white pony with shabby feathers and a mop of a black mane. "I am Vector Sliderule and I tell you what the unicorns ask for is outrageous! That is two thirds of our total rain farm production! It will beggar our farmers to give the water away and have it wasted so at the end of the day. They must raise the water themselves from ground sources. At any rate, they must do so for their own survival, so there is no need for us to be involved. We will benefit whether we help or not, and in any event, will not the farmers still need rain?" He stepped aside to a smattering of applause.
Starswirl cleared his throat and walked to the center of the platform. "Pegasi, if you do not aid us, there will be a much smaller chance of us finding any permanent solution! As we said before, it will take double the labor for us to raise the water ourselves, and not only is it self-defeating to choose such a course, it is lazy and selfish! I have always been told that the pegasi of Stratopolis were hard-working and fair! Is this true?" He stepped back to the side, applause for his statement being somewhat louder than for Vector Sliderule, who nodded to him and returned to the center.
"The pegasi of Stratopolis are indeed hard-working and fair, but is it fair to deny hard-working earth pony farmers who have already contracted with us for the water they need for their farms?" There was a decent amount of applause for this position as he returned to the side of the Pnyx.
Starswirl took center stage and held up his hoof, thinking furiously. "Ah. Instead of simply disposing of the water at sunset, unicorns could continue to support it, and break it up into smaller quantities that can be pushed to the farms by pegasi at the end of the day, there to be delivered as contracted. It means extra work for the unicorns and that he delivery of the water be delayed until evening but it seems like a better use of resources." He stepped back to loud applause and some whistling. Vector Sliderule looked thoughtful, pursed his lips and nodded, conceding the argument. He returned to his seat.
"Well done, my love!" Celestia whispered.
"Do I get a reward?" He smiled in his saucy, boyish way.
"Yes actually, I read another article the other day... oh, here's the next one."
A pale green mare with a long blue mane stood atop the mound. "I am Maney Cloudpusher, and I ain't got a lot of education and I don't understand none of what they just said about conventions and all, but I can tell when somepony is lying, and for sure, they're tellin' us the truth. I don't know if what they just said is the best solution for the problem, but I know its been getting colder and they believe they can help. That's all I have to say, thank you." She stepped down to a smattering of applause as Starswirl and Celestia smiled their thanks.
The next four ponies either voiced support or minor objections to the plan, which were addressed by Celestia and Starswirl. During this time, the amphitheater filled up, both the lower ring for the Boule and the outer ring for observers. Word had gotten out that something important was being discussed and pegasi of all colors, shapes, sizes and ages now filled the place, at least a thousand. They chattered with one another in urgent discussion, passing notes which Grey Wind identified for her as politics, short messages and thoughts for each one to consider. She had to admit that despite her earlier skepticism, this method of decision-making gave everypony a voice, and if it required a lot of wrangling to get things done, it seemed like a better way of getting to the heart of the matter than the backroom dealing of the unicorn nobility, where your rank often spoke more loudly than your ideas.
Then she realized that the next three pegasi set to speak were the ones who threw fruit at her. A tan pegasus with a gold mane and blue eyes glared at her and Starswirl with ill-concealed loathing. He strode to the center of the Pnyx. "Pegasi, citizens, ponies of Stratopolis, I am Stern Cloudbreaker! These unicorns have come here to frighten us into giving away our freedoms! These oligarchs," he spat the word, "these kneeling, bowing, scraping, royalty-worshipers, hate our Demokratios! They fear us, and they should! When the ponies they oppress on their estates, who break their backs with labor so these few can live in golden splendor, see how free ponies live, they would rise up and throw down their castles! I do not believe a word they say, and neither should you!" He stormed off, to a small amount of applause, immediately to be followed by a reddish mare with a silvery mane and piercing green eyes.
"I am Sunrise Shadow and I support Stern! We cannot trust oligarchs! They bring no proof, only theories and magic!" She spat down into the cloud at her hooves. "Why would the sun suddenly stop functioning? I wonder if they had anything to do with it?!" She also stormed off to sit and glare at the unicorns next to her ally. The third pegasus however, looked at them as if he wanted them dead on the spot. He was tall, lean and a deep gold in color, with a richly flowing fiery mane.
"And I am Thunder Stormtrotter. You all know me." He spoke with a voice like liquid gold and the crowd listened intently. "I have no doubt; none! that the unicorns are behind this! They are our enemy! They wish to be our overlords, to command the weather as though it was another of their craven slaves! They have been using their magic to block the rays of the sun!!" There was a murmuring at that, a disturbingly strong muttering among the crowd that caused Celestia and Starswirl to look at one another in worry.
Thunder Stormtrotter continued. "This is their endgame; to force us into their service, and then use us to break the freeholds of the earth ponies! Did she mention that her plan only allows for two years of harvests at the freeholds, after which the earth ponies will be forced to give up their freeholds and become tenants, licking the hooves of the unicorn masters?" He grinned at them triumphantly as Celestia and Starswirl stared in amazement. How did he know about the problem with the freeholds? "Is this not so, Equesse?" His voice was filled with mockery.
She stepped forward, shaken, realizing that he had the crowd at this point. "The sun will not produce enough light in the third, fourth and fifth years to warm the freeholds as well as Unicornia, but we've two years to work on a solution that will preserve the freeholdings." Her voice was not as strong as she would have liked.
"And after two years, lo and behold, there will BE no solution!" Thunder Stormtrotter raised his hoof as his voice rang out. "The poor, free earth ponies, they will have to move onto the lands of the unicorn nobility and royals and start paying rents! And then, after five years when you start allowing the sun to shine again, their land ruined, the freeholders will have no choice but to remain tenants, serfs in all but name, for the rest of their generations!" He slammed his hoof down into the cloud, kicking up puffs of vapor. He was truly a formidable speaker. "And we left with no independent farmers to sell our services to, just you tight hoofed unicorns, squeezing us for every drop of rain you can!" There was a low, angry roar from the crowd.
Celestia was close to tears as Starswirl stammered out, "It... it isn't like that! That would be madness!"
"Ha! Madness for us to go along with your plan! This has been a long, slow act of aggression against the ponies of Stratopolis and the freeholders below! Well, it is time for us to wake up! I say we deal with these aggressors the way our ancestors would have!" There were cheers and applause. "I say we reply to this aggression by declaring WAR!" There was loud and sustained applause. No, no, oh sweet moon! What have we done to deserve this? Celestia was close to panic. "I say we take these two so-called ambassadors, spies really, and cast them off the clouds to break upon the free lands below! And then prepare our squadrons to strike against the enemy, unaware that their plans are foiled! And I say we do it NOW!" There was a swelling of applause and cheers that was sustained for a few seconds, but then started to fade.
Celestia looked to the crowd which had suddenly gone silent. There were ponies standing up, old stallions and mares, grey-maned, wrinkled, some walking with crutches, all of them heading to the Pnyx. Some from the Boule seats, but many from further back. "Now I say! Take them by the horns, my friends, that they may not ensorcell us! Commander Hurricane, why do you stay your hoof? Is not the will of the Boule appar.. uh..." then he too saw the elderly ponies ascending the speakers' platform. All the other ponies who were waiting in line had helped them up and then gone to sit down, except for a couple who stood by the most feeble of the elders, supporting them.
"Grey Wind, what has happened?" Starswirl looked around, barely able to comprehend that the angry, bloodthirsty mob of one minute ago was sitting in respectful silence.
"It is the Areopagus, the Court of the Ancients. They are addressing the Boule as a body. This is unheard of."
One of the judges walked towards Thunder Stormtrotter, who was staring in shock, all of his plans blown to rhetorical ruin. "But grandfather, I am not yet finished speaking." The old light brown pegasus had casts over his eyes. He was plainly quite blind.
"Yes you are, my grandson." he said in a warm, kindly and soft voice that was full of love. "These are not the unicorns that killed your mother, my daughter. You cannot even see what they have brought with them. I am as blind as a moonless night, but even I can see that Equesse Celestia bears the torc of Ponyeidus itself. Do you not, my child?"
"I do, sir." This old pegasus seems to wear wisdom like a tailored cloak, she thought.
"And how do you think I know this?"
"Because somepony with good eyes described it to you?" He smiled at her answer and nodded.
"See? Nothing spooky or mystical about it. Not that part, anyway." With that cryptic remark, he turned from her and faced the Boule.
"Friends, we have no authority to direct policy, so we merely give what we believe is the best advice we can. These unicorns come here with the truth in their hearts. Believe what they say, and do what you can to aid them as best as you can. Tonight, I would have them as my guests, and while I would not have a symposium, I would understand if others wanted to attend dinner with us. You all know how large my hall is, so please work it out among you who would come. I also invite the Epistates and the Strategos. And of course, my esteemed colleagues of the Areopagus. Tomorrow, it would be a good idea for there to be an emergency meeting of the full Ekklesia. Not that I can order such, but I think it would be helpful at this time. Thank you all." There was polite and universal applause around the Boule and in the back benches.
He turned as the rest of the elders returned to their seats. "Equesse Celestia, I am Strongwing the Fearless. It is very good to know you."