The sea of faces stretched before him, both a familiar sight and a foreign one. At the sight, however, his breathing finally calmed and his flashcards may have been the hilt of his sword. The roiling wave of the sound from the crowd peaked as strode onstage. Despite the undeniable lump in his throat, he felt emboldened as he walked towards the podium where Mayor Mare was waiting expectantly.
He took to the stand, sending scattered cheers into the air. "Knock 'em out!" Mayor Mare whispered.
He set his flashcards before him, noting Lyra's face in the crowd near the back. He smiled and opened his mouth.
"Hello, fellow Ponyvillians! It is wonderful to be here today of all days, when we are about to reach the cusp of history in the making..."
He paused as the cheers rose. The crowd had expanded as a fleet of pegasai took to the sky; the sun patched out in places, turning the stage into a bustling pool of shadowed movement. He continued.
"For what I am told has been many years, the train line that connects Ponyville with the rest of Equestria has faithfully run to many places; from the heart of Canterlot to the east-side charm of Manehattan—the honest western strength of Las Pegasus and yes, even the purest snowy northern reaches of the Crystal Empire. Ponies of all walks of life and kinds have traveled safely and reliably to Ponyville from these metropolises... but Ponyville itself has been the center for all of Equestria to pass through. Ask any resident in Equestria and they'll have a story to tell or two of our town.
"But a single vision has arisen among the head voices of these major settlements. All trails lead to Ponyville, our little town of destiny... but unless one could fly, traveling from Canterlot directly to Las Pegasus takes much time, a stop in Ponyville and other smaller settlements included. To top this off, the current trains run on trusted coal power and take many hours to make the trip, even from Ponyville.
"But! Over the years, the pegasai of Cloudsdale have been attempting to harness lightning as a potential energy source—with their hard-won research combined with the intricacies of unicorn magic is before us today. A recent technological breakthrough rose; a harmonious chord of magic and science sounded sweet melodies of the future. Under the supervision of the Foundation of Equestrian Science and Technology, a beautiful spell that entwines the raw forces of electricity of magic into a single, easily manipulated force was borne. This was the catalyst that provided the final spark of a burgeoning revolution across Equestria.
"So we move forward with an initiative. Among the many uses for this wonder energy, a project with grand proportions and ambitious gains is with us today as the first application; a bullet train mega-rail that connects all five of Equestria's largest settlements, capable of reaching speeds of nearly quadruple current train models. One could travel directly from Manehattan to Las Pegasus to Canterlot and back in a single day without delay; even Dash would be hard pressed to keep up."
A single shout of protest from the sky came amongst the titter of laugher from the crowd below. He smirked and continued.
"For those with family in big cities across the land, it won't take a day and a half to get to where you need to go, just to see family. A good cousin could be a lunch break away, and your back in time for work tomorrow. Convenience, our greatest advantage; speed, our greatest ally.
"This new train requires a completely different kind of track to function, hence the need to build. The current tracks will remain in service while construction is ongoing, but on it's opening day, the old train system will be shut down.
"It will be fast! It will be affordable! And by the end of the day, it will begin. This mega-rail will connect all five cities in a loose five-pointed star formation, with an outer circle available for shorter routes. I would like to acknowledge the representatives and vice representatives of all five cities for convening over the last several weeks in order to make this dream a reality."
He paused again, looking over at stage right.
"Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor of the Crystal Empire, who generously pledged natural resources to help construct it!"
The two of them sauntered out onto the stage, giving a royal wave of acknowledgement. They stood by the podium amidst hearty cheering and clapping.
"Next, Princess Luna and Princess Celestia, who rallied the wealthy of Canterlot to help fund this endeavor!"
Both princesses came out from the other side, close to each other. As they sat down and followed Cadance's example, the crowd cheered ever harder.
"Third, a thanks goes out to Fancy Pants of Las Pegasus! Because of his lobbying and shrewd business dealings, additional material support and labor have been pledged to make this dream a reality that much faster!"
Fancy Pants walked up and took a seat beside Shining Armor, giving a slight bow in the process. Unlike the royalty, his was met with a polite round of applause.
"Of Manehattan's support, the Foundation of Equestrian Science and Technology is of special importance. The head chairpony of FEST, our representative of Manehattan in addition to vice-representing Las Pegasus, had agreed to design and oversee the construction of this mega-rail, which begins today after the ceremonies. Representing Manehattan, please give a warm welcome to Bassino Verrifik Azion and Gosthette Bayotharja Shyling!"
A considerably louder round of applause sounded as they walked on stage, sitting on Luna's right. Pennaprose suspected Gosthette's appearance had something to do with it.
"And lastly, our very own Twilight Sparkle and Mayor Mare are her with us to represent Ponyville among this coalition of the greatest leaders of greater Equestria! Twilight has been working late nights—as I'm told, or else we'd all just suspect she was reading for fun at the loss of her midnight oil again—in coordinating every possible aspect of this grand project. We all owe her a debt!"
Lastly, Twilight walked on from stage left and took a seat next to Fancy Pants. He caught a dirty look from her before she did, however.
"Yes, a debt... indeed."
He flipped over his flashcards, laying them facedown. He had no use for them for what he was about to say.
"But I speak now, not as a citizen of Ponyville, but as a pony of Equestria. I, who was once human, have gotten the chance to live in peace in this admittedly strange and beautiful world. Every time I wake up from a dream, I feel as if I have fallen into another... a dream where peace is a reality and not just a word. Swords need not be crossed in this time of commerce; only boundaries of age, skill, and gender alike.
"What keeps us hoping for a better future? What keeps us thinking that tomorrow, we may succeed at something that one day past, we did not?"
The crowd had grown silent, all eyes filled with excitement. He stole a side glance and noticed that everypony on the stage except Gosthette had craned their neck to watch him.
"This project, which has garnered the nickname of Project SUNFEST in honor of tonight being the Summer Sun Festival and FEST's contribution, was built on dreams. One day, somepony had a dream. Maybe in the realm of sleep or the reality of waking thought, but they acted on it. It spread like a virus, picking up speed, striking up deals.
"Together we make dreams a reality. As magic and science continue to coexist harmoniously in today's culture, I stand before you today as a result of both working together. A dream made real, a wish come true; for you all, and for me. For... dreams are the lifeblood of inspiration and progress. Lest the world descend into a nightmare without them... as we have gathered here to bear witness to such. Thank you."
A final, thunderous roar of cheering and applause blasted throughout the square. Pennaprose felt as if a tidal wave of sound had risen before him and threatened to crash down with the force of, well, a train.
He felt a hoof on his shoulder. It was Gosthette, her expression was one of boredom, yet in her eyes he could find a familiar spark of worry.
"Problem, Gosthette?" he asked.
She gave the slightest of nods without a change of expression. "There is much catching up we need to do, Pennaprose. Find me near the edge of the forest. Bring Lyra with you, too."
She flew off before he could say anything. Another hoof on his other shoulder alerted him. This time it was Twilight.
"Not the best I've heard from you, but it was still pretty good!" she said. "And for your information, I only used up ninety percent of my oil on coordinating SUNFEST."
"While the last ten percent went towards re-reading Daring Do books, I bet," said Pennaprose. "Hey, I winged the second half anyway."
"You've wung... wanged? Wunged? Well, you've done better in worse conditions, frankly," commented Twilight. "What are you doing afterwords? The festival doesn't really kick into high gear until tonight. ...You're used to being up all night anyway, aren't you?"
"Said the bookworm to another bookworm," returned Pennaprose. "But yeah, I might want to catch a nap before the festival starts if I want to be awake for it. Oh! That reminds me."
"What is it?"
"Lyra was asking if the two of us could drop by the castle later tonight. According to her, I need to get more fresh air in my face. And, well... we kinda missed the excitement when Tirek ran through. I've hardly had the chance to see the interior of your new castle."
Twilight's face lit up. "Oh, of course! Actually, with all the princesses of Equestria in Ponyville tonight, I was hoping to get a small party of sorts together anyway! Pinkie is off somewhere gathering materials, Rarity is dressing up the castle due to the high profiles that will be there, and AJ's making a special order batch of cider. Fluttershy and Dash can't be there, unfortunately; they said something about the castle's table map sending them to the far edge of the forest. You two are invited, of course! Oh, and Gosthette too, if she's not too busy being a grump somewhere in the forest."
He beamed. "A rare opportunity, is it? How often are the princesses of Equestria all in one place?"
"Almost never! Well, unless there's another Tirek, at least," said Twilight, spinning on the spot in excitement. "I invited all the representatives as a sign of good will, of course. My castle, 8 o'clock!"
She trotted off with a spring in her step. He watched her go, feeling rather elated, but it dipped into terror almost immediately. ...Shit. I have absolutely nothing to wear to a high-class party of royalty and business leaders.
He paced back and forth, trying to think clearly. Okay, okay... uh, what to do... ah! Rarity said she needed a model for stallion suits once, didn't she? Even if she already got a ponnequin from Manehattan since her asking me, it wouldn't hurt to ask.
"Penni? Everypony's already leaving, why are you still pacing up here?"
He looked up. Lyra had somehow gotten in front of him without noticing. "I swear, the second you start thinking about something, everything else just stops existing for you, doesn't it?"
He gave her an awkward smile. "Em... a bit? But before I forget, about tonight Ly..."
He told her about all the things that just transpired. She nodded in understanding. "Gosthette, then a suit for a fancy party? Then you want to squeeze in a nap in between now and 8PM so you can stay up for the Summer Sun Festival?"
"Exactly. Twilight's invited both of us and Gosthette if she wants to come."
She raised a hoof to her mouth playfully. "I see... well then, all this means is that we should probably take care of everything as soon as possible! Let's get you the suit first, we can drop it off at home before talking to Gosthette. You said she said she would be waiting at the edge of the forest? Maybe we'll see her hanging around home anyway."
She trotted off purposefully, leading the way. He galloped to keep up, smiling again.
It's gonna be a busy day indeed...