The pegasi that founded Equestria have a dark past, a past steeped in war and a fight for the survival of their very race, and one that Commander Hurricane played a key role in.
Clover the Clever tricked war goddess Celestia out of a coup attempt. Now she's traded the sun to woo him, and he faces a bleak prophecy: if he's brave and clever enough, he just might survive her affection for long enough to break her heart.
In early Equestria, the pegasi cling to their traditions. Seeking a father for her foal for one of those traditions leads Pansy to consider her true feelings for Commander Hurricane, but she finds his emotions protected by armor nopony has pierced.
A newly researched contraption allows Rainbow Dash to travel to the past, more specifically inside the mind of the greatest military general that ever lived: Commander Hurricane.
On the day of Equestria's first Winter Wrap-Up, the pegasus once known as Private Pansy – now promoted to Captain Pansy – leaves the celebrations early to face her former commander. Who is now in prison.