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// Part II, Chapters II-IV: Of Royalty and Revolution 
// Story: Before Equestria 
// by Fluttershyfan 
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“Of course I’m loyal to you, Tinnie, but I just don’t see what we have to gain from aligning ourselves with these scoundrels and marauders.”

With a heavy sigh, the new monarch of Unicornia turned to her cousin. “Firstly, Stewart,” she began, “I refuse to be called ‘Tinnie’ any longer. That name didn’t amuse me when I was a filly, and it certainly doesn’t amuse me as queen. Now, I won’t demand you address me as ‘Your Highness,’ but I do demand that you address me by my given name.”

“Certainly,” acquiesced Stewart, throwing his hooves upwards in a melodramatic display of surrender. “Please, Platinum—my lovely, darling cousin—explain to me what you believe you are accomplishing with this Equestrian League.”

“That brings me to my next point: I take offense at your characterization of our fellow ponies,” Platinum said sternly. “You call them ‘scoundrels,’ do you? And ‘marauders?’ I’m certain you would be shocked to know what many Earth ponies and pegasi call us unicorns!”

Stewart rolled his eyes. “Dreadful things, I imagine. They’ve never been polite to us, and have never given us a reason to be polite to them.”

“That’s not true!” Platinum retorted. “At least, it isn’t any more. Times are changing, Stewart, and we need this alliance. I refuse to remain aloof and allow Ponyland to fall to pieces all around us! If we want to not only survive, but live peacefully, and happily, we need to get over the petty feuds of the past and learn to be in harmony with the other tribes!” Reaching across the table, she entangled one hoof in her cousin’s fancy collar and dragged him closer. “If you can’t understand that, you are a traitor—not only to me, but to my father’s memory, as well!”

“Please, please!” Stewart pleaded, scrabbling at his collar with both hooves. “Platinum, I understand! But you’ll be committing political suicide if you advocate for this alliance before the Assembly of Nobles!”

“Is that so?” the queen growled, with a skeptical twitch of her brow.

“I assure you, Platinum, that it is!” Stewart gasped. Tiring of his flailing, she released him, allowing him to sink to the table in exhaustion. “You managed to convince your father of the value of this alliance, and nopony dared to contradict him. You must understand that there was never a unicorn in history who commanded as much respect as your father. King Platinum was a hero of mine, and was the same to many, many ponies.”

“I know!” Platinum hissed. “My father was an excellent king. Fair, and wise—and, goodness, Stewart, I miss him so much...” As the tears began to well up in her eyes, the queen flung herself to the floor, hiding her face.

Nodding, Stewart stood, looking down at his cousin sympathetically. “The whole of Unicornia misses him, Platinum,” he replied slowly. “Now, I can’t claim to have known your father all too well, but I believe that he would never want you to give up your throne. And I’m afraid that’s what you will be doing if you pursue this alliance before the Assembly of Nobles. You will go forward, Platinum, and they won’t follow. It will be insurrection. Chaos!”

“Then what do I do?” Platinum cried, staring disconsolately up at Stewart. “Tell me, Stewart, what do I do? There’s still so much I don’t understand about being a queen!”

“At this point, you have a decision to make, and it is a difficult one,” Stewart admitted. “Frankly, I wouldn’t want to be in your position right now. But, as I see it, you must make a decision between your ideals and your crown. And it’s very likely, my dear cousin, that whichever one you do not choose—you will lose. Possibly forever.”


*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*


They soared just below the clouds, their wings pumping furiously as they circled at ever-quicker speeds. Below them, tens of thousands of prisoners of war were beginning the long march from Dream Valley to the detention camps outside the city of Skysopolis. Commander Hurricane and Starstrike could hardly care what happened to those defeated warriors. With their leaders, Garland and Alouette, dead and captured, respectively, any attempt by them to continue the war would be uncoordinated and easily contained.

"Well, commander, I'd say that this war is finally over," Starstrike commented, sanguinity evident in her voice. "With Garland dead and his legions decimated, Hippocrene is ours for the taking."

"You'd seem to be right, Starstrike," Hurricane agreed. He glanced at his loyal officer, and she returned his gaze affectionately. "It's been a pleasure serving with you, captain. The war might have gone much differently if I didn't have you."

Starstrike scoffed. "Commander Hurricane, you are possessed of the greatest martial mind of any pegasus in history. The presence or absence of a single subordinate officer would've made little difference."

"Still, I'd much rather continue to work closely in the future," Hurricane insisted. "We'll discuss the matter further in time. At this moment, I must attend to our guests."

As the two pegasi landed solidly on the loamy soil before them, Clover and Smart Cookie stiffened, as if they were warriors coming to attention. Hurricane had forgotten how small the two foreigners were, relative to himself—their manes could hardly brush his shoulder. "Clover the Clever. Smart Cookie. Wonderful of you both to pay me a visit here in pegasus territory," he said. "I'm sorry I couldn't greet you properly before the battle began."

"That's alright," Clover assured him. "We understand full well the importance of what you've done here today. And, on behalf of King Platinum, I sincerely thank you."

"Chancellor Puddinghead sends his fond regards, as well," Smart Cookie added, bowing her head.

"Give them both my sincere thanks!" Hurricane requested, receiving assurances that it would be done from both the Earth pony and the unicorn. Pleasantries being taken care of, Hurricane allowed the two to go on their way, and himself returned to the sky, Starstrike in close formation behind him.


*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*


The mare that returned Platinum's austere gaze from within the depths of the mirror was a vision of beauty and royal authority. She would need to utilize to the fullest her diplomatic wiles and political discretion to see the Equestrian League through this convocation of the Assembly of Nobles intact.

"With quorum established," intoned Duchess Coriander, the moderator of the Assembly of Nobles, "the chair now recognizes our sovereign ruler, Queen Platinum of Unicornia."

Turning from the small mirror beside her throne to the three hundred esteemed unicorns seated beneath her, the young queen answered the moderator's call with a pronounced clearing of her throat. "Loyal subjects," she began, "I thank you for your condolences upon my late father's all too abrupt death, and for the great faith which you have placed in me as I begin the difficulty process of assuming his position as monarch of Unicornia. I am sincerely grateful to each and every one of you."

Her opening remarks earned a resounding round of applause, and Platinum relished the distinctive sound of hooves stomping against the ornate ceramic tile of the Assembly Hall. "Some might call this the dawn of a new era in the history of our tribe," she continued. "I do not. While my father's reign has ended, what he stood for yet survives, and his policies will continue to change Unicornia—and Ponyland as a whole—for decades, if not centuries, to come!"

More applause. While Platinum might have been tempted to take it as a sign of approval from the Assembly of Nobles, she understood that such a response was all too often purely perfunctory—she was still, essentially, surrounded by her political opponents. "I plan to honor my father's memory in the best way I know how—by ruling justly, and abiding by my conscience, just as he always did. And this is why my first act as your queen will be to request the ratification of a comprehensive treaty of alliance between Unicornia and the pegasus and Earth pony tribes."

As expected, a resounding silence dominated the hall. While there were a few members of the Assembly of Nobles who were loyal to their queen—her cousin Stewart perhaps foremost among them—they did not dare to applaud and risk losing stature in the eyes of their peers. "Contrary to what so many unicorns believe, our three tribes have more similarities than differences!" Platinum declared, forging forward with her planned speech. "We cannot lose sight of the fact that we are all ponies, and we all have a fundamental desire to live in harmony. Some have said that the Equestrian League will cause us to forget our past—to allow our proud unicorn culture to fall into obscurity. This will not be the case. The purpose of this alliance is not to merge three tribes into one—rather, it is intended to allow three tribes to resolve the misunderstandings and conflicts that have plagued our relations for centuries, and live together in peace and friendship."

"I implore you, my loyal subjects, to consider the ramifications of your rejecting this alliance. Three generations ago, unicorns fought and died by the tens of thousands against the Earth ponies in what ultimately proved to be a wholly unnecessary war over a next-to-useless parcel of land. Do you want to see your sons and daughters risk their lives in battle? Or would you rather see them grow up without fear, in a Ponyland free of petty bickering and disparate factionalism? The choice lies squarely in your hooves. Honor my father's final wish and secure this alliance now."

Stepping back, Platinum gauged the reaction to her speech in silence. Some faces seemed sympathetic—others were clearly less so. The Equestrian League would face a long, hard slog here in the Assembly of Nobles—a more bitter fight than any fought by Commander Hurricane's legions.