“One hundred years!” cried the mayor. “One hundred years! On this day, a hundred years ago, Celestia gave Her life to save us all!” She continued on, preaching about Celestia’s great sacrifice. I’d heard it all before, of course. Everyone in the village had, at one point or another. However, we had no choice but to stand around and listen, as mayor Scroll went on and on about Her greatness. It was a special occasion, after all.
“For six days, the citizens of Equestria lived without sunshine, without day! But then, on the seventh day, the sun crested the horizons!” she cried, with much more enthusiasm than any of the rest of us. “And then, She descended upon the land, and went to confront the Nightmare!”I’d heard the tale so many times; I wasn’t even paying attention anymore.
“The battle raged on for three days, the princess and the Nightmare matching each other blow-for-blow. Celestia, knowing that she was on her last reserves of strength, and seeing what would become of her beloved subjects if She failed, made the ultimate sacrifice! She cast a powerful spell, destroying both Herself and the Nightmare, and saving all of Equestria!”
This set the young ones cheering, stomping their hooves in excitement. I, however, couldn’t take the boredom any longer. Pushing through the crowd, I eventually escaped the claustrophobic confines of the town hall. Stepping into the wilderness outside, I was immediately confronted by a familiar face.
“Hey, punk! Where the hell do you think you’re going?”
It was Dozer. Of course, out of all the ponies they could have had standing guard, it had to be Dozer! “Just wanted to get a breath of fresh air,” I said. The huge, dark brown mare lumbered over. Towering over me, I could smell the muskrat on her breath. “You know how it can get in there.”
“Oh, I know alright,” Dozer replied. “I also know that I’m not supposed to let anypony out until Scroll’s done with her speech. Especially you, Rat.”
“Come on Dozer, we’ve all heard the story a million times now! Just this once? Please?”
She smirked. “Well… alright.” I started to walk away. “But!” I looked back at her. “Only if you agree to do me a favor.”
Sigh. Of course. “Alright, fine. What do you want?”
“There’s a caravan passing through tomorrow. Belongs to some old geezer up north. I’m supposed to guard it till it gets to him, but I’ve got plans. So, now it’s your problem.”
Caravan duty? Oh well, anything to get out of one of the mayor’s five-hour speeches.
“Alright, I’m game.”