//------------------------------// // The Decision to Advance // Story: The Nineteenth Century: The Saga of Equestria // by mint20 //------------------------------// Chapter 10: The Decision to Advance The Nineteenth Century: The Saga of Equestria “Well, that could have been better,” said Celestia, as the American diplomat left the room. “It also could have been worse,” pointed out Liston. “A lot worse. Here, at least, we have established that the American is willing to compromise. With any luck, you’ll get them to pay the fallen soldier’s reparations.” “Perhaps,” she replied. “But justice is not served through a fine alone. The criminal must be shown that what he did was wrong, and society must take steps to correct it. If we just allow him to get away with it…” “What is this ‘Hearth’s Warming Eve,’ anyways? I get the feeling that it is not a religious holiday…” “But it is,” said Celestia. “Well, not in the way you might think. Let me explain.” “Millennia ago, Equestria did not exist. Rather, ponykind lived in three separate ‘Tribes,’ divided along racial lines. Their relationship was...less than friendly. After a few particularly devastating wars, (and accidentally freezing over our old home), ponies moved south to this land, and after almost managing to freeze this land over as well, the Tribes decided that they had greater threats than each other. The story is actually quite fascinating: each of the three leaders and one of their aids were forced into a cavern to escape the creatures known as Windigos, who were causing the winters that followed the ponies. Then, as a the leaders continued to bicker and fight, all three of them were frozen into ice themselves. It was their aides, freed of their leaders’ prejudices, that were able to look past the horn, the wings, and the lack of both to see that, at the core, all ponies were alike.” “It was this that lit the Fire of Friendship for the first time.” “Immediately, the Windigos started to lose their power, and their hold over the leaders soon broke. When confronted by their aides with this new information, the leaders agreed that bigger threats faced ponykind, and that our species could no longer afford to fight amongst themselves in petty disputes. Thus, in a monumental move, the Six Founders, as they’re known today, dissolved the political boundaries between the Tribes and founded the Equestrian Republic.” “Now, harmony between ponies - or rather the lack thereof - nearly drove ponykind to a slow, painful extinction through starvation. As such, immediately after the Great Warming, as it is called, pony philosophers soon started calling not just for harmony between the Tribes, but for harmony between communities, individual ponies, and within a pony’s personal life. Harmony in all things, they called for, or death and suffering to us all. And it stuck. Soon, a whole branch of philosophy was dedicated to the promotion of harmony, and it gained remarkable traction among the ponies of the Republic. This ponies even proposed that if a pony managed to achieve absolute harmony, she would ascend beyond normal ponies and become something more. What this thing was, however, they didn’t know.” “And then Discord came. Discord is quite literally the antithesis to everything mentioned in philosophy of harmony. And he was able conquer all of Equestria and subject it to his tyrannical reign of terror.” “But, as some of the more radical philosophers said at the time: Harmony would always reassert itself. And so it did. When my sister and myself led the Harmonious Revolution to overthrow Discord, the philosophy of harmony saw another massive resurgence. However, this time, they had an answer to the question of perfect harmony. The pony ascends to be an Alicorn.” “With this change to the philosophy, the ponies of Equestria touchingly named it after me. To this day, I am considered the symbol of perfect harmony, and the philosophy is known as Celestialism. And one of its most important ‘holidays’ is the first time ponies were able to form a harmonious society: Hearth’s Warming.” “So they worship you?” “No! I may be a symbol of harmony, but neither my sister or I are deities, and we’ve never claimed to be. There is a small group that does make that leap of faith, known as the Cult of Divinity to the rest of the population. For the most part, however, the population does not consider my sister or I to be goddesses. There are no gods or goddesses in Celestialism.” Here, Celestia allowed a small smile through. “Though, it is rather flattering that a small part of the population does consider me a goddess.” “So, your ‘religion’ is a lot more like the eastern religion of Buddhism than Christianity,” reflected Liston. Celestia decided not to comment for various reasons, not the least of which that she nothing about this “Buddhism.” February 28, 1817 British Embassy to Equestria Second Day of Negotiations “Welcome back Princess Celestia, Ambassador Erickson,” said Liston. “Shall we begin again?” Both pony and human gave their consent. “Excellent. It has come to my attention that an official punishment for our most popular human has been handed down by the Equestrian courts. Is this correct, Princess?” “Yes,” replied the pony princess. “Can you please state the sentence for the record?” Celestia cleared her throat, and recited the ruling from memory. “The ruling, issued from the High Court of Equestria, rules that the defendant is guilty in all charges. Under the advice of the Royal Council, the High Court waived the penalties from disrupting harmony and disrupting a celebration of Hearth’s Warming Eve. On the remaining charges, the guilty party is sentenced to a fine of one hundred ninety-five thousand, seven hundred and fifty bits, seventy-five thousand of which is reserved for the family of the fallen guard. Above and beyond this, the party is additionally sentenced to twenty-five years imprisonment, effective immediately. It is so ordered.” “This is unacceptable,” said Erickson, crossing his arms. “The man has no means to pay such a fine, and the United States will not allow one of her citizens to rot in a foreign prison ran by a completely different species.” “The ruling of the High Court is not up for debate,” replied Celestia. “They have made their ruling, and now it falls to me to enforce it. I have no more power over it then you do.” “And yet, you hold the power to pardon this man and deliver him back to his own kind.” “The pardon that I hold is reserved for extreme instances. The last two times I used the pardon was to pardon two beings that had already faced over a thousand years of punishment. And those two instances have been the only two times I - or any Princess of Equestria - have invoked the power of the pardon.” “Your legal precedent is irrelevant. This court is trying to convict a man that does not even share their species! How can they be trusted to try him fairly?” “Do you mean to imply that Equestria’s legal system is racist? That it treats humans and ponies differently?” asked Celestia, in a deadly quiet voice. “Peace!” barked Liston, cutting Erickson off before he could answer the charge. “Enough bickering. Nothing is gained here.” Celestia bowed her head slightly, acknowledging the point. “Now, as we all know, the essence of diplomacy is compromise,” Liston went on. “With this in mind, is it possible for you, Princess, to pardon this man as part of a treaty?” “Technically,” replied Celestia. “It’s never been done before, but nothing explicitly prohibits such an action. The political repercussions of such an act, however...” “That will be considered in the compromise,” Liston said smoothly. Turning to Erickson, he said, “You will need to dispatch that message to Washington DC soon, for now we have a solid sum of money. “But, again, we have none of these ‘bits.’ How much is this fine worth?” Celestia cleared her throat. “According to my calculations, that amount of money is worth approximately seventy-seven pounds of pure gold.” “Very well,” replied Erickson. “I will convey your demands to the United States. I cannot guarantee that the government will fulfill them, though.” “Noted.” March 3, 1817 Canterlot, Equestria “Now, I ask you, will you grant our request?” asked Celestia, facing the two human diplomats. Liston spoke up first, saying, “Absolutely. An exchange in embassies is traditional, and seeing as we have already opened one here, it is only fitting that we open one for Equestria in London.” Celestia inclined her head. Remarkable just how willing the British are to work with us. As she turned to the American, he quickly said, “Of course, the United States of America...welcomes your diplomatic mission. We will not turn away those who seek peaceful solutions over war.” Was it Celestia’s imagination, or were his final words a little pointed? Putting the possible observation aside, she said, “Very well. I will dispatch work teams within the week to travel to Washington, DC and begin work on an embassy. I trust that a few of your settlers can serve as guides? They will be compensated for their services.” “Should not be too much of a problem.” “As for the United Kingdom…” Celestia continued, trailing off. Liston picked up on the hint, and said, “I will get in contact with the British government. Surely they will send a ship to pick up a building crew. His Majesty the King will be delighted to receive them.” “Excellent,” replied the Princesses. After a moment, she added, “Ambassador Erickson, thank you for your time. If you do not mind, I need to speak to Ambassador Liston in private.” Erickson inclined his head, and took his leave. As the door closed behind him, Celestia turned to Liston and said, “Earlier, you said that the United Kingdom would be open to advising Equestria in a few matters. Is that offer still valid?” “Of course,” he replied. “What can we help you with?” “Well, my fellow royals and I have seen the need to establish a diplomatic presence in other nations. Traditionally, such talks have always occurred in face-to-face situations between rulers. Now, however, it appears that the world is much too large for such an idea to be feasible.” “And you want me to help train your kind, to make diplomats capable of facing the world out of them.” “Yes.” “Interesting,” mused the human. “I could do this, if you provide the recruits. Classes would be somewhat infrequent, as I do have an embassy to run, after all.” “Of course.” “And there would be the question of my payment…” “Send the bill to the Royal Council,” replied Celestia. “If it is reasonable and fair, we will pay.” “Excellent.” March 10, 1817 Salt Lick City, Equestria “We ready?” asked Silver Compass, leader of the Equestrian expedition to the United States. “Ready,” replied the human setter that had just joined them. “Then let us move,” replied Silver Compass, and the expedition of six ponies and one human started to leave, trekking east. It would be the first time in written memory that ponies had left the borders of Equestria. June 25, 1817 British Embassy to Equestria Third Day of Negotiations “Thirty-eight pounds?!? That isn’t even half of what was ordered by the courts!” said Luna, who, in a moment of weakness, Celestia had allowed to accompany her. Not that Celestia disagreed, though. “My sister is right. This is unacceptable,” said Celestia. “I’m sorry you feel that way, Princess. However, this is the maximum payment authorized by Congress.” “The ponies of Equestria will never stand for this. We cannot allow the will of justice to be overturned at the first sign of adversity.” “Are you saying that you will fight the United States over this?” “Enough!” interjected Liston. He said more, but Celestia tuned him out, looking for a compromise. After a moment, she settled on a figure, then said, “Ambassador, Equestria does not want conflict. In the spirit of peace and harmony, we will release the human for a sum of fifty-eight pounds of gold. That is three-fourths of the court’s demands, and I will handle the political aftermath. Now, please, let us drop this matter and focus on the future.” “I must decline, Princess Celestia,” said the human ambassador. “I have already given you my terms, and they are the only ones I am authorized to accept. Now, the United States of America demands that you turn that man over to us for punishment according to the laws of the United States of America. Are you refusing our demand?” How did it come to this? wondered Celestia. How did everything spiral out of control so quickly? And here we are. This is it. Celestia weighed the reports given to her by Cadance’s scouting expedition, considering just how strong the American military was reported to be. Way too strong. We cannot fight them! And yet...an idea appeared in the back of her head. What if he’s bluffing? The idea was a fascinating one. After all, by all accounts, it would take almost a year for the United States to move troops from their core provinces to the border of Equestria. Such an action would be expensive, and would not necessarily result in a gain for them. But if I’m wrong and he is not bluffing, I am dooming my little ponies to death… All other routes exhausted, she had but one choice left. Princess Celestia drew herself up to her full height, spread her wings, and, with all the royal authority she could muster, said, “It appears, Ambassador, that I have no meaningful alternative. As a result we shall release this human in exchange for the sum of money that you proposed. Let the record reflect that I make this decision under duress, and with the threat of an unwinnable war hanging over my head. Let the record also reflect that I formally protest the actions taken by the government of the United States of America, and, again, I only take this action because of the overwhelming force possessed by that government.” “The record shall so reflect,” said Liston. “Speaking as an ambassador from the United Kingdom, I also wish to inform Ambassador Erickson that the United Kingdom will almost certainly be lodging a formal protest against this perversion of justice.” “That’s rich,” replied his counterpart, “as the United Kingdom has demanded such treaties from other countries in the past.” “Either way,” Celestia interrupted, “is that satisfactory? Can we now put this mess behind us and look to the future?” The Ambassador stood up and said, “Yes. This concludes negotiations.” He started to leave, then added, “I assure you, Your Highness, that the man will have his day in court.” August 13, 1817 Special Meeting of the Equestrian Royal Council Canterlot, Equestria “Pardoned?!? PARDONED?!” exclaimed Luna, certain that the messenger had deceived her. “Yes, Your Highness. The office of the President of the United States has issued a pardon for that human.” “You’re dismissed, my little pony,” said Princess Celestia. The pegasus bowed, but pause before she left. Looking Celestia in the eye, she asked, “May I speak what I am thinking?” “Always,” replied Celestia. “Princess, are we going to allow this to keep happening? The humans are walking all over us, for pony’s sake!” Celestia felt an iron bar drop into her stomach, but held firm. “My pony...I agree. This has gone on for long enough. Now is the time for action. Now is the time to show these humans that they cannot expect us to just roll over at the first sign of trouble. Now is the time to learn to play their game. If we cannot, then we might as well asked to be annexed to their lands right now.” Turning to the Royal Council, Celestia, again mustering all the royal authority she could, asked in as authoritarian voice as she could, “All those in favor of embracing the ideas of the West, in the name of Equestrian independence, raise your hoof now!!!” All of the other three Princesses raised their hooves, and history was forever changed.